Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences

The Department of Molecular, Cellular & Biomedical Sciences participates in the teaching of the normal structure and function of the human body and nervous system and the molecular and cellular mechanisms that underlie medical physiology, human behavior, and tissue pathology. Knowledge of basic medical and neurological sciences provides the foundation needed to understand the mechanisms by which drugs exert their clinical actions. Members of the Department are engaged in the teaching of cell biology, biochemistry, anatomy, histology, microbiology, immunology, infectious diseases, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, neuroscience and neuropsychiatry to medical students at the CUNY School of Medicine at CCNY. In addition, the Department is also responsible for teaching gross anatomy, microbiology and immunology to students in the Physician Assistant Program. Faculty members of the Department are active and productive researchers. They are engaged in NIH-funded investigations in the areas of molecular, cellular and systems neurobiology, with a focus on behavioral neuropharmacology, psychopharmacology, neuronal plasticity and motor learning, spinal cord injury/recovery and neurodegenerative disorders. Faculty members also pursue investigations in immunology and autoimmunity, wound healing and regenerative medicine, experimental pathology, and cancer and cardiovascular biology. Departmental faculty mentor and guide doctoral students in the CUNY Graduate Center programs in: neuroscience and cognitive neuroscience, molecular, cellular, and developmental biology, and biochemistry. Graduate and medical students conduct research and are mentored in our laboratories which are located at CCNY.